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Actively Engaging the Opposition: James O'Keefe and Media Matters

By far, one of the most substantive discussions at this year's largest conservative gathering, CPAC, was the panel that followed the screening of Hating Breitbart. The film which focused on the career and character of Andrew Breitbart, showcased his wit, grit and determination.

Following the screening of the film, a panel comprised of Larry O'Connor from Breitbart.com, Ari Rabin of Media Matters for America, John Fund from National Review Online, James O'Keefe of his own Project Veritas and finally, David Mastio of USA Today began the discussion by recounting how they first met Andrew Breitbart. The moderator, Rusty Humpries, saved Rabin for last. Rabin expressed his condolences for the loss of our favorite happy warrior... and then immediately proceeded to call James O'Keefe a liar.

O'Keefe responded on point, but respectfully. Rabin's diatribe was littered with mischaracterizations of Jame O'Keefe's work, but he made one point that's definitely worth exploring. "You've [conservative media] spent so much time speaking to each other, you no longer have the ability to speak to the American public." Of course as a progressive, Rabin didn't cite this as a complaint, but rather as a victory for progressive leaning entities like Media Matters. His comments are something everyone engaged in conservative media should mull. When was the last time we engaged with someone who didn't agree with our political leanings? When was the last time we sought out opposing points of view, not to mock, but to learn?

It is unfortunate that exchanges such as this don't happen more often. These days it's easy to forget our political foes are flesh and blood, not just vitrolic little avitars or bylines on a computer screen. While there's something to be said for online engagement of ideological foes, nothing beats a good heart to heart conversation with someone diametrically opposed to everything you believe.

When I first found conservatism, I also found William F. Buckley, Jr. Buckley's show Firing Line is still one of my favorites and there are episodes I watch periodically. Some I watch purely for amusement, but the others I enjoy because of the fact that Buckley was able to consistently, civily engage with the most radical of the radical (the infamous Gore Vidal incident being an exception). In addition to giving a platform to all kinds of viewpoints, good the bad and ugly, a genuine curiosity of the opposition made Firing Line intriguing.

Aside from shows like Fox News' The Five (which barely, if even classifies as a broad spectrum presentation), there's a disappointing lack of oposing opinions landing in the same forum. Factor in tailor made news sites that shelter readers from the wiles of "liberal media," and we're moving towards a culture of ideological isolation. Isolation that arguably justifies Rabin's criticism of conservative media.

The O'Keefe/Rabin exchanges and years of Firing Line archives prove one thing: you will survive verbal encounters with ideological enemies. And even better than that, you may actually benefit from them. If we are to advance as a movement, our ideas have to be released from the prison of the echo chamber. Engaging with the opposition serves as a necessary reminder that life exists beyond your opinion and that people really do believe differently.

As the blogosphere expands, diversifies and matures, many folks in the conservative blogging world are tempted to say that the mainstream, legacy, alphabet network media has become obsolete. Bloggers seemingly break more news, do more investigative journalism, produce high quality audio and video, and fill a void that newspapers are no longer able to fill. As ad revenue has shrunk, reporting staffs at newspapers across the nation have been slashed, and circulation is shrinking. All while consumers have an ever growing appetite for news, amplified by the instant access of social media. It is tempting to view this landscape and smugly conclude that we bloggers are the wave of the future, and it's only a matter of time until the MSM is little more than a memory.

Last week, The Oregonian newspaper announced that it was cutting print circulation to 4 days a week, laying off most of its staff, and forming a new digital news company. In a mostly tacit, but sometimes explicit admission that print media is facing its demise, the oldest newspaper on the West Coast confirmed that the future is in digital publishing.

Project Veritas, lead by the intrepid James O'Keefe, released their latest investigation yesterday. This time, a group of guerilla journalists tackled the California Homeless Bill of Rights. Similar to legislation passed in Rhode Island last summer, the California Homeless Bill of Rights passed the judiciary committee with a vote of 7 to 2. The bill means to stop the criminalization of homelessness by allowing the homeless to be wherever they want, whenever they want, or so the lefties believe.

Today on the FreedomCast, actor, comedian and FoxNews commentator Steven Crowder joins me to discuss the importance of pop culture as it relates to politics. What does he admit to me during this show? You’ll have to listen to find out.
Have a suggestion for an upcoming FreedomCast episode, or a comment?

Twitter's impact on traditional media has raised the benchmark for breaking news and its existence has blurred the perception of media credibility vs. reliability. Breaking news is often reported to Twitter first then re-tweeted and immediately broadcasted to the traditional media and other various internet sources. This puts a twist on the way Americans view news outlets.

On today’s edition of The FreedomCast, Kemberlee Kaye from Project Veritas joins me to talk about her role in exposing media bias, the importance of breaking a new story and why conservatives should learn how to successfully infiltrate hostile territory.

James O'Keefe's Project Veritas released their latest investigation today. Utilizing the most common anti-second amendment argument of the left, "for the children," Project Veritas investigators confronted Piers Morgan, TriBeCa Enterprises employees and Oprah's production company, Harpo films. Posing as a non-profit group called "Act Against Arms," investigators asked Hollywood to sign a pledge to remove all guns from films, past and present.

This month, the Pew Research Center released its annual State of the News Media Report. The results are grim. The report portrays an industry that is calcified, monolithic and unwilling to overcome the bias that, like an aggressive form of cancer, is causing its death from the inside out. The mainstream media complex is clearly on life support.The opening of the report is devastating:

Seven US Marines died and several others were injured when a mortar round exploded in its tube during a training exercise in Nevada on March 18th. The cause of the accident is still under investigation.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) took to the floor of the Senate and in a move of incredible political cynicism, blamed the deaths on sequestration.In effect, the Senator blamed the Marines involved for their own deaths.